Quadron Services

Training Manager - In line with 2010's focus on "our people" a corporate training manager has been appointed to coordinate all the company's training activities. Elaine Callaghan's first focus will be to ensure practical on the job training is undertaken on every contract through the Lantra-Awards qualified instructors.

Personal Development Plans - Minimum skills requirements for each post ensure that staff are competent. Each employee has a personal development plan and annual performance review, with training support available to assist them to fulfil their full potential.

Induction training - each employee receives comprehensive induction training. For those not fluent in English this includes practical demonstrations to ensure a full understanding. Induction training also includes an overview of the contract specification and customer care standards required.

In-house training - internal courses include health & safety issues such as manual handling, working at heights and HAVs. Additionally, many senior members of staff are trained as NVQ assessors. Our Health & Safety Manager, Steve Plumley, is a CIEH registered trainer and qualified to deliver a variety of health & safety and environmental courses. He is currently ensuring that all managers and supervisors within the company gain the following qualifications:

• CIEH Health & Safety in the Workplace Levels 2, 3 & 4
• CIEH Principles of Risk Assessment Levels 2 & 3
• CIEH Principles of COSHH Level 2.
• CIEH Environmental Principles and Best Practice Level 2.

All managers and most supervisors are now qualified to Level 2 in the first three and the Level 3 training and Environmental Principles courses are being carried out during 2010, with the remaining supervisors and team leaders commencing Level 2.

LANTRA-AWARDS TRAINING

Contract Trainers - 17 Quadron staff (at least one on each contract) have recently qualified as Lantra Awards Instructors in Groundscare Machinery. The training involved a 5 day "Instructional Techniques" course together with two days of Operator Training on Ride-on and Pedestrian mowers and a further four days of Operator Training on strimmers, hand held hedge cutters and backpack blowers combined with Technical Standards training and Technical Evaluations. (See download on the right for further details.)

This training represents a substantial financial investment by Quadron, not only in terms of the initial training costs but also in the ongoing continual training of its workforce in each location to ensure that they are competent to fulfil their roles.

In addition to the above, several specialist training courses which are being carried out during Spring 2010, for example:

• Lantra Awards Tractor Driving and related operations: 23 candidates attending.
• PA1/PA6a Pesticide training & NPTC assessments: 35 candidates attending
• Street Works (Chapter 8) C & G Certified Training: 28 candidates attending
• Detection of Underground Services: 6 candidates attending
• Lantra Awards ITA Chipper/Shredder training: 27 candidates attending
• Lantra Awards ITA Chainsaw Maintenance & Crosscutting training: 7 candidates attending
• RoSPA Routine Playground Inspection training: 47 candidates attending.

Customer Care training - Employees are taught the importance of portraying a good image on behalf of the company and its clients. They are made aware of the impact their working practices might have upon other people, for example the danger of leaving tools lying around or blocking paths or leaving them slippery. They are taught to be approachable, helpful and informative and to communicate effectively with all members of the public.

Equality & Diversity training - All managers attend an ACAS Equality & Diversity course to enable them to understand their obligations to their workforce and to the general public. All employees receive basic Equality & Diversity training during their induction to ensure they have consideration for all other colleagues and members of the local community.

Train to Gain Schemes - Quadron works with several colleges and organisations such as BTCV to provide Train to Gain courses for all interested employees to enhance their horticultural and administrative competencies. These schemes have proved very popular even with the least academically minded employees, allowing them to study at their own pace in their workplace, mentored by more senior employees. Literacy training is also given where the English language is a problem.

Apprenticeships - Quadron is able to provide excellent workplace experience across a range of both horticultural and administrative job roles and has established links with many colleges and training providers. Please see the "Apprentices" page.

Community Training Schemes - Quadron actively participates in a range of working groups and initiatives whose aim is to raise the level of skill and knowledge within the horticultural industry, particularly for disadvantaged groups. An example is the Thrive "Working it Out" intitiative and some joint schemes with Groundwork, a local environmental regeneration charity whose objective is to "build sustainable communities through joint environmental action".

Future Jobs Fund - Quadron has entered into a partnership with Groundwork to provide placement opportunities under the Future Jobs Fund schemes. The FJF clients work a minimum of 25 hours per week and are given the opportunity to train for NVQ 2 in Amenity Horticulture. As at April 2010 we have 125 trainees on this scheme across all our contracts. These do not replace other paid jobs but provide additional services over and above the contract specification, thus providing an enhanced service to local communities. This has enabled long overdue regeneration works to be undertaken in many areas.